WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today announced that workers at Warren Steel Holdings in Warren are eligible to apply for trade adjustment assistance through the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). In January, Brown wrote to U.S. Labor Secretary Thomas Perez in support of the petition.

“The loss of a job can be a devastating experience,” Brown said. “Ohioans who work hard and play by the rules should not be left to struggle when they lose their job because of trade. These resources will help ensure that displaced workers in Warren receive the financial support and training opportunities needed for a fresh start.”

Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) is a federal program that provides aid to workers who lose their jobs or whose work hours and wages are reduced as a result of increased imports. The program extends benefits including training for employment in another job or career, income support, job search allowances, and relocation allowances. Qualified workers may quickly return to employment through a combination of these services.

Brown has been a long-time advocate for the TAA program and efforts to ensure that workers have the training and tools they need to fill jobs in high-growth industries. Brown fought for an extension of the program last summer. Without the extension, funding for TAA would have expired in Sept. 2015. The extension was included in the trade preferences package. In February 2015, Brown introduced the Trade Adjustment Assistance Act to provide long-term authorization for TAA while expanding eligibility for workers.

In November 2014, Brown successfully led a group of 14 senators in calling on the Senate Appropriations Committee to maintain funding for the TAA program so workers could continue to receive benefits through September 2015. In February 2011, Brown led 13 senators in urging House leadership to extend TAA. As one of the last acts before 111th Congress adjourned, Brown secured a six-week extension of the TAA program, in addition to the HCTC.

Brown has also worked to improve the antidumping and countervailing duty laws to level the playing field for steel companies. The Leveling the Playing Field Act, introduced by Brown in March 2015 and signed into law in June 2015, will restore strength to antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) statutes that allow businesses and workers in the United States to petition the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission (ITC) when foreign producers sell goods in the U.S. below market price or receive illegal subsidies.

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